Zentangle Tiles and ATC

Hi everyone
Another lovely morning today (almost) - not a good forecast but ...... maybe ? - Im so looking forward to waking up to sunshine everyday. Im ever optimistic but probably living in the wrong place !!

It's Die Cut Friday again - today, I was going to share my Miss Burton packaging (only finished it earlier this week) which I started two Fridays ago. However, Ive sold it already and forgot to takes any development photos. I have more to make so I will share the project photos next time.

Instead something very exciting, this weeks die cut is a Sizzix die which is sold as an ATC (artist trading card).









Im using the diecut for my Zentangle work - the Zentangle people call such a thing a 'Tile' ie. the prepared bit of card. Making Zentangle pieces requires a new tile for each piece therefore having the die makes light work of preparing the tiles and saves lots of money (if you choose to buy them !)
I have a recycled box which I use to keep my Zentangles.





The size of the box is perfect - it does look a bit big on the photo but when there are lots of Zentangles I want to index them and feel the extra width of the box will be beneficial. The box is a recycled item from Paperchase - it had some lovely greetings card at sale price in it. I love the butterfly top - its beautiful. I want to customise it in some way ? Will work on that one.

I find the ATC die a very useful die for lots of things - a great size for many uses and has lovely rounded corners, which I especially like. The diecut is brilliant for producing display and scrapbooking as a layering tool. I sometimes use it as a very large tag or an envelope address label. The die can cut a wide range of papers too and can use heavy material too. I have made a cover for a mini book from felt in the past. A Big Shot is needed. The actual final shape measures approx 9x6.5 cms (31/2 x 21/2 ins).

Getting back to Zentangles, I have a new Zentangle book which is a bit more whimsical than my other book - look back to find details of the first book (around Jan/Feb 2013). The first book is better for detail on 'pure' technique but this book is lovely.



My take on Zentangles is about developing stuff for my paintings so Im not especially aiming to be precise about the art of Zentangle but it's a great discipline to stick to 'the rules'.I like the simplicity of the approach and its great for mobile work. I spend many hours taking,waiting and picking up my boys from playing sport and I find the Zentangle project perfect for using my time effectively and enjoying the space to doodle.

I've had a quick session trying to find a few ideas for the new painting of Annabel (introduced yesterday). My idea is to incorporate some of the Zentangle art as a background for the painting. I think I will use the first one.


I also created another and it's probably a better thing for the painting but my effort is not as good as the first. I will try again and see if I can improve the shapes of the tree.



These examples are in simple pencil - I will reproduce something similar using colour before deciding what to include. I think the mushrooms will be good with Annabel. I've seen some birds too which I will try out. Lots to do !

That's it for this week. I hope you are inspired. Have a great weekend. Im going to a bead fair on Sunday and have booked a class. Im so excited about this. Will let you know how it turns out.

Bye for now.